Le Bistro Claude- Fine Dining in Cognac

A few weeks ago we had a day in Cognac first visiting the Hennessy Cognac Experience which was followed by lunch in Le Bistro Claude in the heart of the old town of Cognac.

I found Le Bistro Claude through my Viamichelin app, which informed me that this was the best place to eat in Cognac vieux ville.

One thing we have learnt in our short time in France is that the french like to eat at lunchtime rather than the evening. By law restaurants have to offer a “Menu du Jour“, a menu of the day. Usually consisting of three courses, the food on offer is usually seasonal, local & features on the a la carte part of the menu. Even Michelin starred restaurants have to offer this.

The price varies depending on the type of restaurant, but you can pay anything from 10€ upwards. Our lunch was €25 for three courses and the food was delicious. Unsurprisingly the place was packed with people eating off the rather expensive a la carte menu, this is certainly the place to have a business lunch.

Locally smoked Gensac fish with avocado mouse and poached eggs with a chorizo crean sauce and a parmesan crust were the starters.

This was followed followed by loin of lamb and a cod fillet dish, the pictures do more justice to the food rather than my description!!

Dessert was a white chocolate pannacota which was followed by coffee. We drank a local Charantais red wine and had some rather pricy beers as an aperitif, but all in all great value  for such a high quality of food. We will be back.

Restaurant La Ribaudière: One Michelin Star

Our first visit the Poitou-Charente area was in early January 2016. Our aim that long weekend was to find somewhere we could rent. We immediately fell in love with the Charente and the property we now live in and all other viewings were mostly cancelled or were very quick.

That gave us some time to explore the area further. A quick look on the viamichelin.com website and we found a Michelin starred restaurant situated near Jarnac and, more importantly for me, close to what is now our nearest golf course at Golf du Cognac.

We had a lovely that day lunch at La Ribaudière. It was a foul day and like the UK the area had had a huge amount of rainfall in the previous weeks. The banks of the Charente were close to breaking point but it didn’t interrupt our meal.

Fast forward nine months later and we decided one Friday to have a lunch date. La Ribauldière felt like the obvious choice.

It’s a gorgeous drive through the heart of Cognac’s vineyards. We skirted the area of Segonzac, which apparently grow the most prestigious grapes of the Cognac area. “The Grand Champagne” which is used in the finest Cognacs and nothing to do with fizzy wine production!

As you can see from the photos below the weather was very different than back in January, with a couple of small cruising boats pulling up on the bank for lunch.

The nibbles we had with our aperitifs and the amuse bouche and set the tone for a lovely meal using ingredients from the chef’s own garden and local suppliers.

Here are a few photos of our seven-course tasting menu, the highlight being the langoustine ravioli in lobster sauce.

Foie Gras with Smoked Eel & Asparagus

Langoustine Ravioli with a Creamy Lobster Sauce

Spicy Lamb with a date sauce

Roasted Cod with Saffron Risotto

A fantastic “chariot de fromage” was served, followed by two sublime desserts

On the way home we had a little diversion through Jarnac past the Courvoisier Cognac House. 

I cant recommend La Ribauldière enough. It’s seriously good value for a michelin starred restaurant. Compared to the UK, prices are 20% cheaper and thats before you take into account that every french restaurant must include service charge in their advertised price, which saves another 10%-12.5%

La Ribaudiere http://www.laribaudiere.com

Bon Appetit et A bientôt

Ian

 

Treating the Grandparents at Le Poirier Restaurant

We have had the pleasure of Lauren’s Grandma & Grandad staying with us this week. They’ve begun to understand our love of the Poitou-Charente region  and I am sure they will be back before Christmas.

We’ve taken them twice to our favourite restaurant, Le Poirier, in nearby Bardenac. Restaurants like Le Poirier are one of the main reasons I wanted to live in France. Rustic french cooking at its best.

The formula is quite simple. They only open for lunch, serving a 7-course menu the 13€. Yes thats not a typo…thirteen euros!!! There is no choice. All the food is local, seasonal and its is simply cooked.

Theres no fancy service, you use the same crockery and cutlery for all the courses, just wipe you plate with the bread that’s part of the 13€ price!!! Oh I forgot….the 13€ includes all the red (or rosé) wine you can drink (and water t00!)

The service is swift and simple. You get every course served on a platter and just help yourself until you’ve finished that course. Oh I forgot again….the 13€ includes your tip* too, although I always leave a little bit more.

*The price you pay for your meal in France always includes tax and tip. You only pay what you price you see on the menu and it is illegal for them to add an extra service charge on your bill.

The seven courses usually consist of Soup, Vegetable dish (we’ve had potato salad, mushrooms, couscous), a Carb dish (e.g.Vol-au-vonts, Croque Monsieur), Meat (usually Pork) served with a vegetable dish (ratatouille is the latest seasonal dish), Salad (just fresh lettuce in a dressing, always served after the meat), Cheese, Dessert & finally coffee. You can also sit outside and enjoy the glorious view 🙂

On Sundays they still do the seven course menu, but the meal takes on a more relaxed tone, with lots of French families treating themselves. The ingredients are more expensive and the price goes up to a whopping 21€ for adults and 11€ for kids. You also get new plates for each course 🙂

Here’s what we had today

Some nibbles with our Aperitifs

Red Pepper Soup

The next platter was actually two courses. Charantais melon with local air dried ham and foie gras paté

Fish Course (Monkfish I think)

Charolais Veal with a Cep Potato Cake & field mushrooms, cheese stuffed courgettes

Salad and Cheese followed (sorry no photo), but the cheese board was yummy. Finally dessert was a really light raspberry sponge.

Coffee finished off a splendid meal which was enjoyed by all, including the little ladies.

As everyone who knows me will testify I love my grub. Much that I like fine food I would prefer this type of meal over michelin starred food any day of the week. This is the sort of place you could come every week of the year, as it appears a lot of the locals actually do and we seem to have done since our first week here!!

Bon Appetit et a bientôt

Ian